Zezel gave Maple Leafs more than puck skills

Peter Zezel was only 44 when he died yesterday of complications from a blood disorder.

Peter Zezel, right, arm wrestles with his father, Peter Sr. in Toronto on January 18, 1991. His mother, Valerie, and sister Neda look on. Peter Zezel died May 26, 2009. He was 44.

By:Paul HunterSPORTS REPORTER, Published on Wed May 27 2009

The matinee idol looks, and his fierce pride in wearing the Maple Leafs' jersey, won him countless fans in this city.

But it was Peter Zezel's generous spirit and infectious joy that won him hearts. To meet him was to like him; it might even land you a piece of his clothing.

"My brother-in-law was visiting from Australia and he commented on how much he liked his jacket," long-time friend and one-time teammate Nick Kypreos was recalling last night.

"Peter took it off and gave it to him. It was a beautiful jacket but he wouldn't take no for an answer. Peter would give you the shirt off his back."

Zezel, only 44 when he died yesterday of complications from a blood disorder, will always be remembered for being part of that 1992-93 Leafs team that took Toronto on a delirious run through the 1993 playoffs.

The roller-coaster ride of emotion fell one game short of an appearance in the Stanley Cup final but Zezel's relentless checking, his faceoff prowess and his dogged penalty killing came to symbolize the individual sacrifice required to go deep in the playoffs. For two years – the Leafs returned to the Western Conference final in 1994 – Zezel was a hugely popular fixture on one of the best teams in hockey.

But, as lasting as those recollections might be, the argument could be made that Zezel contributed more to his hometown of Toronto once his seven-stop, 15-season NHL career ended in 1998-99.

Every summer in Markham, he ran camps combining hockey, soccer – another game at which he excelled – and golf where he tried, as he often said, "to put the fun back" into kids' sports. He also immersed himself in coaching AAA hockey with the Don Mills Flyers and was making plans for a fourth year behind the bench.

"The kids are devastated on the team. They loved the guy. He was a big teddy bear," said Don Mills president Peter MacInnis.

"He could make them work hard but still enjoy the game. It was a gift he had with kids. A lot of times, I think he was like a big kid himself and the kids related to it."

Rare is the local hockey dad who hasn't seen Zezel around the rinks and probably shaken his hand. The thrill always seemed to be mutual. His sharp wit, welcoming nature and sense of humour, allowed him to make and keep friends easily.

"He was always giving, whether it was on the ice or off the ice," said NHLPA director of player affairs Glenn Healy.

Maybe that's because of his own roots, a kid from Scarborough who had to battle for everything he got, first showing up with Don Mills at 14 after another coach cut him, telling him he couldn't skate. He was drafted by the junior Toronto Marlboros out of midget and then by the Flyers, the NHL variety, as an 18-year-old, making the team even though he wasn't highly touted.

Zezel made it home in 1991 when he was dealt from Washington along with Bob Rouse for Al Iafrate.

"I'll never forget the look on his face when he found out that he was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs. It was like he'd won the lottery," recalls Kypreos, a Capitals teammate.

"He was just beside himself. Knowing he was going to Toronto to put on a Maple Leafs jersey was in many ways, like winning the Stanley Cup."

Few people understood the importance of the Leafs to Toronto better than Zezel and he gave back to the city whenever he could.

"When it came to charity work, if anybody called him to do anything, he was there to do it," recalls former teammate Bob McGill. "That's how he was in hockey too. He'd do whatever was needed."

Plans have not yet been finalized for a memorial. Zezel was unmarried and had no children.

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